PS5 or PSPro X?

There have been rumours that Sony’s next console could hit the shelves as early as 2018, but comments recently made by Sony’s head of marketing Jim Ryan hint that the company is thinking about following Microsoft’s lead with incremental console releases.

Just weeks ago analyst Michael Pachter stated that he felt Sony’s next console, the PlayStation 5, will release in 2019 – 2020 at the latest.

However, in an interview with EDGE magazine, Ryan spoke about the current state of the console market, and how longevity in systems is dead.

“The cultural phenomenon of regular updates to smartphones and tablets is without question, perhaps subliminally, coloring mindsets,” he said. “And the days of a 13-year PlayStation 2 cycle will almost certainly never repeat themselves.”

Improvements in technology has also meant that online subscription services, such as Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass, reduce the need for definitive console generations, a point that Ryan also alluded to: “also, services which operate agnostically of particular hardware, like PlayStation Now for example, are something you’re going to see more of.”

With Microsoft’s Xbox One X still unreleased and the PlayStation Pro still fresh on the market, it’s unlikely that anything is confirmed. Ryan’s comments do show that incremental console releases are in the company’s mind, though.

“I think we’re only six months into PlayStation 4 Pro, and it’s too early to tell. The Xbox One X hasn’t launched yet. I don’t know if this is the way forward or not.”

Do you think Sony should keep upgrading the PlayStation 4 or would you prefer to see a PlayStation 5? Let us know in the comments section below.